Ontario reports 851 new COVID-19 cases today, and six new deaths from the virus

 

TORONTO -- Ontario is reporting 851 new cases of COVID-19 today, and six new deaths due to the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says 281 cases are in Toronto, 215 in Peel Region, 90 in York Region and 76 in Ottawa.

The province says it has conducted 28,652 tests since the last daily report, with an additional 17,603 being processed.

In total, 295 people are hospitalized in Ontario due to COVID-19, including 78 in intensive care. The province says 51 people are on ventilators in hospital.

The latest figures bring the total of COVID-19 cases in Ontario to 71,224, with 3,099 deaths, and 60,839 cases resolved.

Meanwhile, Premier Doug Ford's office says it will not announce today whether the province will impose stricter COVID-19 restrictions on two Toronto-area regions. 

Ford had said Friday that the experts would look at the caseload in Halton and Durham regions over the weekend to determine whether they need to roll back to a modified Stage 2 of the province's pandemic recovery plan. 

His office says today it is constantly assessing the situation and will make an announcement if and when regions need to be moved into modified Stage 2.

Tighter restrictions have been imposed on Ottawa, Toronto, Peel Region and York Region over the last several weeks as cases of the novel coronavirus soar within their borders. 

Politicians in Halton Region urged the province over the weekend not to lump them in with neighbouring Peel Region, saying there aren't as many COVID-19 cases in their area as elsewhere in the province. 

Halton Public Health recorded 34 new confirmed cases on Saturday, and 31 on Sunday, while Durham recorded 41 cases on Saturday and 52 on Sunday. 

Peel Region, which has a population roughly twice as large as Durham's and 2.5 times bigger than Halton's, recorded 289 new cases on Sunday. 

The province broke its record for the most daily COVID-19 cases both days this weekend, recording 978 cases on Saturday and 1,042 on Sunday.